Evers Vetoes Legislation That Would Revive Old Standards, Report Cards For Wisconsin Schools

Gov. Tony Evers vetoed on Friday a Republican-authored bill that would revive old standards for student test scores and report cards in Wisconsin. 

State Superintendent Jill Underly changed standardized testing benchmarks and reclassified levels of student achievement in 2024. These standards measure the success of students and schools across the state. 

Her opponents argue the changes lower the bar for student performance and muddy school district performances. 

The state Senate passed the bill earlier this month while the Assembly passed the bill in February. 

Online legislative records indicate that Evers vetoed the measure on Friday morning. The governor issued a letter on Friday detailing his reasons for vetoing the measure.

“I have spent most of my life fighting for Wisconsin’s kids and schools. Having served as a teacher, principal, superintendent, and state superintendent before becoming governor, it is exceedingly important to me — and I believe to Wisconsinites, as well — that the state superintendent remains an impartial and independent constitutional officer who answers to the people of Wisconsin, not any other politician,” he wrote.

He argued that the legislation would “override” the state superintendent, fix the standards to what they were years ago and prevent the superintendent from ever updating those benchmarks without the Legislature’s approval. In essence, the governor said that the bill is an overreach by Republican legislators.

“I cannot support legislation that allows the Legislature to encroach on the state superintendent’s constitutional authority, injects partisan politics into setting metrics for student and school success, and undermines the state superintendent’s impartiality and independence,” Evers wrote.

Underly, who is running for reelection on April 1, praised Evers’ decision.

“The proposal was deeply flawed as it relied on the NAEP – a federal assessment that is currently being cut by the federal government and is not aligned to Wisconsin’s rigorous standards – to influence local school policies. Most importantly, it undermined the authority of the state superintendent as outlined in Wisconsin’s Constitution,” she said in a statement.

Underly said that the prior decision to adjust the standards came from direct input from Wisconsin teachers and sought to align “test cut scores with Wisconsin’s academic standards.” She said that assessments are more accurate and meaningful measures of students’ progress and their achievements.

However, Brittany Kinser, who is seeking to replace Underly and has been critical of the change in standards, disagreed with Evers’ decision. The academic standards has been one of the main campaign issues in the state superintendent race this spring.

“The decision to restore high standards now rests in the hands of Wisconsin voters. If elected to be the next DPI Superintendent, I will restore high standards on Day One. Our kids can’t wait and they deserve so much better,” Kinser said in the statement.

Editor’s note: JoAnn Krulatz contributed to this report.